MuMu Muesli- Review and Giveaway! (4 winners!!!)

i'm super excited to be working with the folks from Mu Mu Muesli to offer this fantastic giveaway!
Lisa and Mike are the faces behind Mu Mu Muesli.  They moved to New York City from Oakland, California in 1995 to pursue painting careers and ended up moving to an abandoned Italian boarding house on 80 acres in Historic Sharon Springs located in Schoharie county of Up state New York. They have year round gardens with the help of high tunnels in the winter, use solar power and love and cherish the land and wildlife around them.

They believe that optimum health is derived by eating a plant based diet of whole, unprocessed, delicious REAL food.

So what exactly is Muesli? Muesli is a cereal which is a combination of whole grains, fruits and nuts which Europeans have been enjoying for centuries. Mu Mu Muesli starts with the freshest whole rolled oats, organic dried cranberries, dates, coconut,  raisins,  roasted almonds and organic flax seeds.

Mu Mu Muesli is made in New York. It is a blend of 8 simple, whole ingredients. These ingredients are sourced from farms in the USA, the organic coconut is imported from Multiple Organics. 

Muesli is similar to granola, except that it has NO ADDED SUGAR, NO OILS and NO ARTIFICIAL ANYTHING. It's a great source of fiber and iron. It's a heart healthy food!

Mu Mu Muesli cereal combines fresh whole rolled oats with organic fruit, almonds, coconut and flax seeds & toasted wheat flakes to create the best muesli on the market.

Mu Mu Muesli was named one of 5 "most scrumptious" cereals in the country by Vegetarian Times! 

It can be eaten hot or cold. You can prepare it like oatmeal, using 2 parts water to one part Muesli. Stir into boiling water, cook 3 minutes.  You can also serve it like a cold cereal with milk, or try it the traditional way by combining it with milk and yogurt, fresh fruit and then refrigerate for 30 minutes or overnight.  Visit the Mu Mu Muesli blog for more recipes!

i've really been enjoying it layered with Greek yogurt and my frozen homegrown blueberries, and raspberries. It's really delicious, and i love the chewy texture of the dried dates and cranberries. 

Mu Mu Muesli can be purchased on their website www.mumumuesli.com

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The kind folks at Mu MU Muesli have generously offered to send 2 bags of delicious muesli to 4 winners!!  This giveaway is for US residents only. Enter below using the Rafflecopter form and don't forget to leave a comment on this page.  Good luck!

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Stainless Steel Bento Box Storage Containers- Still working towards #noplastic

i'm still moving forward on my goal to eliminate most of the plastic in my kitchen. One area i still struggle with is storage containers and in the kids lunch boxes for school. Both kids take a reusable lunch box, and i try to use reusable containers instead of plastic bags as much as i can.  i've looked at different stainless steel lunch compartment boxes like planet box, but they just are not big enough for my high school son.   i use a lot glass for storage in my kitchen, but the kids are not allowed to have glass containers on the school bus, so i can't pack glass in their lunch boxes.

So when i had the opportunity to review these Stainless steel bento box storage set, i was thrilled! The set comes with three different sized containers, and leak proof lids.  The lids are made from plastic, but it is BPA free and has a silicone ring seal inside to prevent leaking. These containers fit inside each other with their lids on for easy storage. 

The containers are lightweight, but durable. They are made from 304 (18/8) grade stainless steel and are completely food safe .  The  different sizes hold approx 1 cup, 2 cups and 4 cups.  So these work well to store leftover, or to pack a good size meal for a growing teenager. The only downside, is that they can not be heated in a microwave, so they are best for packing cold foods.

• BENTO LUNCH BOX SET: These food grade stainless steel lunch box set includes three different sized boxes. Great for leftovers, entrees, sandwiches, salads and snacks. This set makes it easy to transport food to work and school each day. 
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• STAINLESS STEEL: Our high quality food storage container set does not degrade or rust. Each stainless steel box is carefully constructed to be reliably rust proof, unlike other so-called stainless steel containers. Stainless steel does not break, like glass, and is super lightweight in your lunch bag. Our design is durable, reusable and eco-friendly.
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• LEAK PROOF LUNCH CONTAINERS: Each container has a plastic lid with a liquid tight seal that fits on easily. No need to worry about spills or leakage. 
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• DISHWASHER SAFE: The containers are dishwasher safe for easy cleaning. They do not absorb odors or stain like plastic. 

This Stainless Steel Bento Box Food Storage set is available on amazon for $24.99.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M8JU1WE/   

These are a nice addition to my kitchen and help me to get closer to my goal of #noplastic in my kitchen. i like this set a lot, my only complaint is the plastic lids. i would prefer them to be entirely silicone, but i appreciate that they are at least BPA free and have the silicone seals. 

*i received this set for free or heavily discounted in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. i was not compensated for my review. 

Glass Goals for 2017- Art with Purpose

i have really been enjoying working with glass this year. Last year, i started making leaf pendants right before the holidays, but as soon as the temperatures warmed up i abandoned it to play in the garden. Although i enjoyed working with glass, i was really lacking focus and had no real direction or ideas about where i wanted to go with it.

In 2015, one of my husband's childhood friends passed away and he was asked by the family to create a glass 'cremation' marble keepsake. It turned out very well, and other people began contacting him asking if he could encase the cremains of their loved ones.   However, he really had no interest in it, as it took time away from his other work, and the one he made was a gift to the family. 

Several of my friends went through devastating loses last year, and asked me if he could make a creation pendant for them.  It hurt my heart to tell them that no, he was not interested in it and then i would direct them to websites where they could order one from a stranger. It seemed so impersonal to suggest such a thing, and i began to realize that this is something i really wanted to do. To be be able to offer a small token of healing in the form of a glass heart. 

So i started this year by making heart pendants. It's still a learning process.  Although i can make them pretty well, i'm constantly working to make them more consistent and improve my technique. Once i felt like i was doing okay with the heart shapes, i started learning to make spirals. 

What i eventually plan to do is encase cremains in clear glass, then do the spiral with both the ashes and colors.  So i'll be making cremation pendants similar to these, but hopefully a lot nicer. 

i'm still practicing my spirals, and once i can make them consistently i'm hoping to learn to work with dichro glass (metallic sparkily looking) and learn to encase ash. i'll start of by using ash from the woodstove, which acts similar to cremains when encased. Then eventually begin offering this service to my friends. i'm really excited about it, and feel that this is art with purpose. It allows me to create, while helping others to heal. 

These are something else i've been working on. i had a request for a breast cancer awareness pendant, and after i made it i began getting other requests for different ribbon colors. This isn't something i plan to sell as a regular item, but i will occasionally take custom orders for them.

So that's what i'm working on this year. Hoping to still find some time to work on dolls, and other crafts which is another passion. Of course, once garden season starts i will be putting a ton of energy into that as well.  i'm also doing a lot of product review again this year, just for fun. So yeah, i have a lot going on, i'm really excited about it and can't wait to see what this year brings.

4 years.

"Sorrow prepares you for Joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots, so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow. Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart far better things will take their place." ~ Rumi

Wolf Moon Rising. First full moon of 2017.

January's full moon is known primarily as the "Wolf Moon," according to the Farmers' Almanac.  The Wolf Moon was sometimes referred to as the Old Moon or the Moon After Yule. Some tribes called January’s full moon the Snow Moon, but most tribes applied that name to February’s full moon. 

What is a Wolf Moon? In January, amid the cold and deep snows of midwinter, the wolf packs howled hungrily outside Native American villages. Thus, the villagers began calling January’s full moon the Wolf Moon. 

i've never been able to capture good moon pictures, they always just look like a bright light in the sky. The other day, i saw the moon out during the day and it was so huge, and clear that i couldn't help but try to capture it with my camera.  i was so surprised when my picture came out so well. You can even see the craters on the surface of the moon. How amazing is that? i just used a point and shoot digital camera with the auto setting.

A few night later, when the moon was almost full it had this beautiful halo around it, so i went out again and tried to get a picture. Lunar halos usually signify that rain is coming.

The first full moon in January 2017, was on the 12th.  i tried to capture it just as it was coming up over the trees.  i thought this photo turned out neat.

i took many photos trying to get the moon into focus, but it wanted to focus on the trees in front of it instead. i thought this photo was just as amazing. i'm actually tempted to turn it into a painting.

Once it got above the trees i took a ton of photos. This was the closest to in focus as i could get. My son got a telescope for xmas, and had it outside looking at the moon. The moons was actually so bright that it hurt our eyes to look at it through the telescope. The night was surprisingly warm for January, and we really enjoyed being out in the moon light staring up at the night sky. The full moon is a time for releasing and letting go of negative energy.  Although the poem below is about a summer moon, i still really liked it and couldn't find one for a winter moon that i liked as much.

The moon is at her full, and riding high, 

Floods the calm fields with light. 

The airs that hover in the summer sky 

Are all asleep to-night.

- William C. Bryant